The U.S. Department of Justice is facing deep turmoil just weeks into the Trump administration. A senior leader within the department describes a workplace full of “confusion” and “fear” as firings and resignations mount. The Justice Department, which holds immense power through the FBI and federal prosecutors, plays a crucial role in fighting crime and maintaining national security. More importantly, it’s where Americans turn to see the rule of law upheld.
Trump claims his administration is “cleaning up” what he calls a department that has been corrupted by politics. Fear has silenced many within the department, but two prosecutors, Sara Levine and Sean Brennan, have chosen to speak out with a stark warning about the future of the U.S. justice system.
Levine, who was fired alongside Brennan on January 31st, warned that “The Justice Department is under attack. They’re coming after the people that want to uphold the laws that exist. And that should be terrifying to everyone.”
Levine and Brennan were federal prosecutors working on one of the Justice Department’s highest-profile investigations—the Capitol riot on January 6th, 2021. They were responsible for prosecuting those involved in the violent attack on the U.S. Capitol, but both were let go by the Trump administration despite their work on the case.
When asked on CBS ’60 Minutes’ why she was fired, Levine was blunt: “Because I did my job. I mean, it’s really that simple, is, I went in. I followed the facts. I followed the law. And I got fired because I did exactly what I was supposed to do.”
Brennan echoed the sentiment: “I think we know what we did was right. No regrets, absolutely none.”
Levine added, “What we did was justice,” referring to the legal actions they took in prosecuting those responsible for injuring over 140 police officers during the Capitol attack.
Both prosecutors were hired about a year and a half ago to handle cases from the January 6th riot. In their time working on these cases, neither of them saw a single defendant acquitted. “The evidence was overwhelming,” Levine said.
But despite their work, President Trump pardoned even the most violent individuals involved in the riot just last month, referring to them as “hostages” and granting them full pardons.
“We know the facts. We know the evidence. And we’re not going to let anybody rewrite history,” Levine said.
As soon as the pardons were handed out, letters of termination were sent to Levine and Brennan. The president’s letters, which followed his pardons, called the prosecution a “grave national injustice.”
With the Justice Department reeling and many within it silenced by fear, the actions of prosecutors like Levine and Brennan serve as a bold reminder of the struggle to uphold the rule of law during turbulent times.”
Peter Keisler, former acting Attorney General under President George W. Bush, also shared his concerns. He criticized Trump’s decision to pardon those who violently stormed the Capitol on January 6th, arguing that it sent the wrong message.
“I don’t think anybody believes that these people would’ve been pardoned if they had engaged in exactly the same acts, but had stormed the Capitol, say, in opposition to the president and his policies,” Keisler said. “It says that you can commit some very serious crimes, but if you do so as an identifiable supporter of the president’s agenda and political interests, you may be able to get off. And I think it was designed to send that message.”
